Patentable/Patents/US-10115423
US-10115423

Near-field transducer utilizing angled reflectors

PublishedOctober 30, 2018
Assigneenot available in USPTO data we have
Inventorsnot available in USPTO data we have
Technical Abstract

A near-field transducer has an enlarged portion with a peg extending towards a media-facing surface. Two reflectors are located co-planar with near-field transducer and located on either side of the near-field transducer in a crosstrack direction. The two reflectors are separated by a gap proximate the peg of the near-field transducer. The two reflectors each include a first edge at the media facing surface and a second edge at an acute angle to the media-facing surface. The second edge faces the near-field transducer. The two reflectors concentrate the light on the peg of the near-field transducer.

Patent Claims
20 claims

Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.

1

1. An apparatus, comprising: a near-field transducer comprising an enlarged portion with a peg extending from the enlarged portion towards a media-facing surface, wherein an end of the peg faces the media-facing surface and an end of the enlarged portion opposed to the pea terminates a first distance away from the media surface; two reflectors located co-planar with near-field transducer and located on either side of the near-field transducer in a crosstrack direction, the two reflectors being separated by a gap proximate the peg of the near-field transducer, the two reflectors each comprising: a first edge at the media facing surface; and a second flat edge at an acute angle to the media-facing surface, the second flat edge facing the near-field transducer, wherein a portion of the reflector near an intersection of the first and second edges is located between the end of the peg and the media-facing surface, the second flat edge terminating away from the intersection at a second distance from the media-facing surface that is less that the first distance of the near-field transducer; and a waveguide coupling light to the near-field transducer to form a hot spot on a recording medium, the two reflectors concentrating the light on the peg of the near-field transducer.

2

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the end of the peg facing the media-facing surface comprises a bevel at a second acute angle to the media facing surface, the bevel facing a downtrack direction and resulting in the peg having a first downtrack thickness at the end that is less than a second downtrack thickness of the peg facing the enlarged portion.

3

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the bevel shifts the hotspot towards a write pole of the apparatus.

4

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the gap as a crosstrack dimension approximately equal to half that of the peg.

5

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising an optical shield downtrack from the near-field transducer and the reflectors, the optical shield having a first edge proximate the media-facing surface.

6

6. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the waveguide comprises a channel waveguide extending towards a second edge of the optical shield, the second edge facing away from the first edge.

7

7. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the optical shield comprises a slanted surface that faces the enlarged portion of the near-field transducer, the slanted surface increasing a downtrack distance between the optical shield and the near-field transducer away from the media-facing surface.

8

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the reflectors taper electromagnetic energy to a region just below the peg.

9

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein an outline of the enlarged portion comprises an elongated rectangle with rounded ends.

10

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the waveguide couples the light to the near-field transducer in a fundamental, transverse magnetic mode.

11

11. An apparatus, comprising: a near-field transducer comprising an enlarged portion with a peg extending from the enlarged portion towards a media-facing surface, wherein an end of the peg faces the media-facing surface and an end of the enlarged portion opposed to the peg terminates a first distance away from the media surface; two triangular reflectors located on either side of the near-field transducer in a crosstrack direction, the two reflectors being separated by a gap proximate the peg of the near-field transducer, the two triangular reflectors each comprising a flat hypotenuse that faces the near-field transducer and an edge aligned with the media-facing surface, a portion of each reflector at an intersection between the edge and the flat hypotenuse being located between the end of the peg and the media-facing surface, the flat hypotenuse terminating away from the intersection at a second distance away from the media-facing surface that is less that the first distance of the near-field transducer; a write pole located downtrack from the near-field transducer; an optical shield located downtrack from the near-field transducer, the optical shield comprising a slanted surface that faces the near-field transducer and increases a downtrack distance between the optical shield and the near-field transducer away from the media-facing surface; and a channel waveguide extending to the optical shield, the channel waveguide coupling light to the near-field transducer to form a hot spot on a recording medium, the two reflectors concentrating the light on the peg of the near-field transducer.

12

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the end of the peg facing the media-facing surface comprises a bevel at a second acute angle to the media facing surface, the bevel facing away from the write pole in a downtrack direction and resulting in the peg having a first downtrack thickness at the end that is less than a second downtrack thickness of the pea facing the enlarged portion.

13

13. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the bevel shifts the hotspot towards the write pole.

14

14. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the reflectors taper, electromagnetic energy to a region just below the peg.

15

15. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein an outline of the enlarged portion comprises an elongated rectangle with rounded ends.

16

16. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the waveguide couples the light to the near-field transducer in a fundamental, transverse magnetic mode.

17

17. A method comprising: directing light through a channel waveguide of a read/write head, the light being coupled to a near-field transducer at a media-facing surface of the read/write head, the near-field transducer comprising a peg that directs surface plasmons from the media-facing surface to heat a recording medium, wherein an end of the peg faces the media-facing surface and an end of the enlarged portion opposed to the peg terminates a first distance away from the media surface; blocking stray light from leaving the media-facing surface via an optical shield located downtrack of the near-field transducer; and reflecting light to the peg via two triangular reflectors located on either side of the near-field transducer in a crosstrack direction, the two reflectors separated by a gap proximate the peg of the near-field transducer, the two triangular reflectors each comprising a flat hypotenuse that faces the near-field transducer and an edge aligned with the media-facing surface, a portion of each reflector at an intersection between the edge and the flat hypotenuse being located between the end of the peg and the media-facing surface, the flat hypotenuse terminating away from the intersection at a second distance away from the media-facing surface that is less that the first distance of the near-field transducer.

18

18. The method of claim 17 , further comprising energizing a magnetic write pole to apply change a magnetic orientation at the hot spot.

19

19. The method of claim 18 , further comprising shifting the hotspot towards the write pole via a bevel at the end of the peg, the bevel facing away from the write pole and resulting in the peg having a first downtrack thickness at the end that is less than a second downtrack thickness of the peg facing the enlarged portion.

20

20. The method of claim 17 , wherein the channel waveguide couples the light to the near-field transducer in a fundamental, transverse magnetic mode.

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Patent Metadata

Filing Date

October 3, 2017

Publication Date

October 30, 2018

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Cite as: Patentable. “Near-field transducer utilizing angled reflectors” (US-10115423). https://patentable.app/patents/US-10115423

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